Written by ForexBrokers.com
In this head to head comparison of Pepperstone vs ACY Securities, we will compare the trading platforms, mobile apps, range of investments, costs, market research, and more. Let's dive in.
CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. Between 51% and 89% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
Pepperstone and ACY Securities are both established names in the online brokerage world, founded in 2010 and 2011, respectively. While neither company is publicly traded or operates as a bank, they differ significantly in their regulatory standings. Pepperstone shines with three Tier-1 licenses and two Tier-2 licenses, making it a highly trusted broker with a commendable Trust Score of 95 from ForexBrokers.com. This indicates an excellent reputation for reliability and security within the financial industry.
On the other hand, ACY Securities holds one Tier-1 license and lacks any Tier-2 licenses, reflecting a more modest Trust Score of 75, which denotes an average risk level. While both brokers offer online trading services, Pepperstone's greater number of regulatory licenses makes it the more trusted choice for investors who prioritize security and peace of mind when trading. Understanding these differences can guide traders in choosing the platform that best aligns with their trust and trading requirements.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
|
ACY Securities
|
|---|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2010 | 2011 |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No |
| Bank | No | No |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 3 | 1 |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 | 0 |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 2 | 1 |
Pepperstone and ACY Securities both earn 4.5/5 stars for commissions and fees. In ForexBrokers.com’s rankings, Pepperstone places #11 of 63 while ACY Securities ranks #22. Both brokers offer commission-free “Standard” accounts with wider spreads and commission-based accounts with tighter pricing for active traders.
Pepperstone’s Razor account lists an average EUR/USD spread of 0.10 pips (July 2024). After adding the commission-equivalent of 0.70 pips, the all-in cost is about 0.80 pips—around the industry average. The Standard account is commission-free but wider at 1.1 pips on EUR/USD. Pepperstone’s Active Trader program can reduce costs: in the U.K./EU, Professional clients trading at least £20 million per month can get a 15% spread rebate per lot, improving to 25% above £200 million; in Australia, Professional clients start with about a 10% reduction from 100 lots (over three months), rising to 30% above 3,001 lots.
ACY Securities has three account types. The Standard account is commission-free with 1.2-pip average spreads on EUR/USD (September 2021) and a $50 minimum deposit. Its commission-based ProZero and Bespoke accounts showed average spreads around 0.25 pips during the same period, with commissions of $6 per round turn (ProZero) and $5 per round turn (Bespoke). For Australian residents, the ProZero commission drops to $3 per round turn, bringing the effective spread to about 0.55 pips (September 2021). ACY also offers a 10‑tier active trader program that can trim costs by 0.5 pips per lot above 50 standard lots per month. In short, Pepperstone’s Razor sits near the industry average before rebates and can get cheaper with volume, while ACY’s best pricing is especially sharp for Australians and slightly better than average elsewhere.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
|
ACY Securities
|
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $50 |
| Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | 1.00 | 1.2 |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.70 | 0.85 |
| Non-wire bank transfer | Yes | Yes |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | |
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | |
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Low Spread Forex Brokers.
Pepperstone and ACY Securities both let you trade forex as CFDs or spot, offer copy trading, and support cryptocurrency CFDs (but not actual crypto). Neither broker provides access to exchange-traded U.S. or international shares. For breadth, ACY Securities lists about 2,200 tradeable symbols and 66 forex pairs, while Pepperstone offers about 1,726 symbols and 65 forex pairs.
Both earn 4 out of 5 stars for Range of Investments. Pepperstone ranks #27 of 63 brokers in this category at ForexBrokers.com, while ACY Securities ranks #31. If you want a slightly wider catalog, ACY has the edge; if rankings matter more to you, Pepperstone comes in a bit higher, with very similar market coverage overall.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
|
ACY Securities
|
|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 1726 | 2200 |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 65 | 66 |
| U.S. Stocks (Shares) | No | No |
| Global Stocks (Non-U.S. Shares) | No | No |
| Copy Trading | Yes | Yes |
| Cryptocurrency (Underlying) | No | No |
| Cryptocurrency (CFDs) | Yes | Yes |
| Disclaimers | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). |
Dive deeper: Best Copy Trading Platforms.
Pepperstone and ACY Securities both check the key boxes for trading platforms and tools. Each broker offers a free demo (paper) account, a proprietary platform, and support for MetaTrader 4 (MT4) and MetaTrader 5 (MT5). You can trade on a Windows desktop download or in your browser, and both support copy trading. They also let you place trades directly from charts, which can help you act quickly when you see a setup.
When it comes to third-party reviews, both brokers earn 4 out of 5 stars for Trading Platforms and Tools. However, Pepperstone ranks higher on ForexBrokers.com at #22 out of 63, while ACY Securities sits at #42. If you want similar platform coverage with a higher category ranking, Pepperstone has a slight edge; if you’re comparing like-for-like features, both deliver a full toolkit for everyday trading.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
|
ACY Securities
|
|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes |
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes |
| Copy Trading | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes | Yes |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 15 | 30 |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best MetaTrader 4 Brokers, Best MetaTrader 5 Brokers.
Pepperstone and ACY Securities both offer full-featured mobile trading apps for iPhone and Android. Each app supports price alerts, 30 technical studies for charting, trendline drawing, and automatic saving of your chart annotations. Both brokers earn a 4-star rating for their mobile trading apps, making them solid choices for traders who want capable charting and alerts on the go.
The key difference is watchlist syncing. Pepperstone syncs your watchlists between the mobile app and your online account, so changes carry over across devices. ACY Securities does not offer this syncing, which may matter if you switch often between phone and desktop. Reflecting this, ForexBrokers.com ranks Pepperstone #21 out of 63 brokers for Mobile Trading Apps, while ACY Securities sits at #41. Choose Pepperstone if cross-device continuity is important; choose ACY if you’re fine managing watchlists separately and want similar charting tools and alerts.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
|
ACY Securities
|
|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Watchlists - Syncing | Yes | No |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 30 |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Trading Apps.
Pepperstone and ACY Securities both deliver daily market commentary and an economic calendar, covering key events traders watch. Pepperstone goes further for market research with forex news from top-tier sources (such as Bloomberg, Reuters, or Dow Jones), Autochartist technical analysis tools, and a sentiment tool that shows the ratio of long vs. short positions. ACY Securities does not offer those extras. Neither broker includes Trading Central, TipRanks, or Acuity Trading tools.
For overall research, Pepperstone earns 4.5 out of 5 stars and ranks #12 out of 63 brokers at ForexBrokers.com, while ACY Securities scores 3.5 stars and ranks #46. If you want integrated news, sentiment, and Autochartist for technical insights, Pepperstone is the stronger pick. If you just need commentary and a clear calendar, ACY Securities covers the basics.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
|
ACY Securities
|
|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary (Articles) | Yes | Yes |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | No |
| Autochartist | Yes | No |
| Trading Central | No | No |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | No |
| TipRanks | No | No |
| Acuity Trading | No | No |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
Dive deeper: Best Brokers for Forex Research.
Pepperstone and ACY Securities both cater well to beginner traders. Each broker runs educational webinars at least once a month and offers 10+ beginner-friendly videos on trading topics, including forex and CFDs. Pepperstone stands out for depth: alongside beginner materials, it also provides 10+ advanced videos for experienced traders. ACY Securities, by contrast, does not reach that level on advanced content, so its path beyond the basics is shorter.
Independent ratings reflect this difference. Pepperstone’s education earns 4.5 out of 5 stars and ranks #17 out of 63 brokers at ForexBrokers.com. ACY Securities scores 3.5 out of 5 stars and ranks #43 out of 63. If you want beginner training with room to progress, Pepperstone is the stronger choice; if you mainly want straightforward intros and regular webinars, ACY Securities still fits the bill.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
|
ACY Securities
|
|---|---|---|
| Webinars | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | No |
Dive deeper: Best Forex Brokers for Beginners.
After testing 63 of the best forex brokers, our research and account testing finds that Pepperstone is better than ACY Securities. Pepperstone finished with an overall rank of #16, while ACY Securities finished with an overall rank of #41.
Pepperstone offers a growing range of tradeable markets, good-quality research, and support for multiple social copy trading platforms.
| Feature |
Pepperstone
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ACY Securities
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| Trust Score | 95 | 75 |
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In this online broker comparison, Pepperstone and ACY Securities do not offer the ability to buy actual (delivered) cryptocurrencies, but both provide access to trade cryptocurrency CFDs.
In this comparison of online brokers, both Pepperstone and ACY Securities support ACH/SEPA for deposits and withdrawals, while Pepperstone also offers PayPal and bank wire (not Skrill), and ACY Securities’ availability of PayPal, Skrill, Visa/Mastercard, and bank wires is not specified.
Please note:
We review each broker’s overall global offering – a “Yes” checkmark in our Compare Tool does not guarantee the availability of any specific features in your country of residence. To verify the availability of any features within your country of residence, please contact the broker directly.
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0 of 5| Overall Rating | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
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| Trust Score | 95 | 75 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Pepperstone Review | ACY Securities Review |
| Broker Screenshots | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
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| Regulation | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trust Score | 95 | 75 | |
| Year Founded | 2010 | 2011 | |
| Publicly Traded (Listed) | No | No | |
| Bank | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | No | |
| Tier-1 Licenses | 3 | 1 | |
| Tier-2 Licenses | 2 | 0 | |
| Tier-3 Licenses | 0 | 0 | |
| Tier-4 Licenses | 2 | 1 |
| Tier-1 Licenses (Highly Trusted) | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia (ASIC Authorised) | Yes | Yes | |
| Canada (CIRO Authorised) | No | No | |
| Hong Kong (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Japan (SFC Authorised) | No | No | |
| Singapore (MAS Authorised) | No | No | |
| Switzerland (FINMA Authorised) | |||
| United Kingdom (U.K.) (FCA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| USA (CFTC Authorized) | No | No | |
| New Zealand (FMA Authorised) | No | No | |
| Regulated in one or more EU or EEA countries (MiFID). | Yes | No |
| Tier-2 Licenses (Trusted) | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya (CMA Authorised) | Yes | ||
| Israel (ISA Authorised) | No | No | |
| South Africa (FSCA Authorised) | No | No | |
| UAE (DFSA, FSRA, or SCA Authorised) | Yes | No | |
| India (SEBI Authorised) | No | No | |
| Jordan (JSC Authorised) | No |
| Investments | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forex Trading (Spot or CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Tradeable Symbols (Total) | 1726 | 2200 | |
| Forex Pairs (Total) | 65 | 66 | |
| U.S. Stocks (Shares) | No | No | |
| Global Stocks (Non-U.S. Shares) | No | No | |
| Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| Cryptocurrency (Underlying) | No | No | |
| Cryptocurrency (CFDs) | Yes | Yes | |
| Disclaimers | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). | Note: Crypto CFDs are not available to retail traders from any broker's U.K. entity, nor to U.K. residents (except to Professional clients). |
| Cost | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average spread (EUR/USD) - Standard account | 1.00 | 1.2 | |
| All-in Cost EUR/USD - Active | 0.70 | 0.85 | |
| Inactivity Fee | No | No | |
| Order execution: Agency | Yes | No | |
| Order execution: Market Maker | Yes | No |
| Funding | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Deposit | $0 | $50 | |
| PayPal (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | ||
| Skrill (Deposit/Withdraw) | No | ||
| Bank Wire (Deposit/Withdraw) | Yes | ||
| Non-wire bank transfer | Yes | Yes |
| Trading Platforms | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proprietary Desktop Trading Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Desktop Platform (Windows) | Yes | Yes | |
| Web Platform | Yes | Yes | |
| Copy Trading | Yes | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 4 (MT4) | Yes | Yes | |
| MetaTrader 5 (MT5) | Yes | Yes | |
| cTrader | Yes | No |
| Trading Tools | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Virtual Trading (Demo) | Yes | Yes | |
| Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Charting - Indicators / Studies (Total) | 15 | 30 | |
| Charting - Trade From Chart | Yes | Yes | |
| Charts can be saved | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile Trading | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Android App | Yes | Yes | |
| Apple iOS App | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Price Alerts | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Watchlist [DELETED] | |||
| Mobile Watchlists - Syncing | Yes | No | |
| Mobile Charting - Indicators / Studies | 30 | 30 | |
| Mobile Charting - Draw Trendlines | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Charting - Trendlines Autosave | Yes | Yes | |
| Mobile Research - Economic Calendar | Yes | No |
| Research | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Market Commentary (Articles) | Yes | Yes | |
| Forex News (Top-Tier Sources) | Yes | No | |
| Autochartist | Yes | No | |
| Trading Central | No | No | |
| TipRanks | No | No | |
| Client sentiment data | Yes | No | |
| Economic Calendar | Yes | Yes |
| Education | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Webinars | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Beginner Trading Videos | Yes | Yes | |
| Videos - Advanced Trading Videos | Yes | No |
| Major Forex Pairs | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GBP/USD [DELETED] | |||
| USD/JPY [DELETED] | |||
| EUR/USD | Yes | Yes | |
| USD/CHF [DELETED] | |||
| USD/CAD [DELETED] | |||
| NZD/USD [DELETED] | |||
| AUD/USD [DELETED] | |||
| Review | Pepperstone Review | ACY Securities Review |
| Overall | Pepperstone | ACY Securities | |
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| Trust Score | 95 | 75 | |
| Winner | check_circle | ||
| Review | Pepperstone Review | ACY Securities Review |
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